Chigger Bites Won't Heal!!!

Hello!
I know this is late... I'm glad you got the problem taken care:) I just wanted to add that I got chiggers while traveling over seas. It was a nightmare! I was able to use the polish for the ones on my body but they were also in my hair! Nothing seemed to help until I used a dandruff shampoo. It wasnt head and shoulders but something similar that used to be RX only and now it is sold OTC. Seemed the little things were dead but my hair was so dried out that it was still itching. Anyway, this was a lifesaver for me so I just wanted to share it. You may be able to use it later:) Good luck!

If he is still itching the chiggers are still there, dot each spot with clear nail polish (colored will work, he will just have pretty spots :o) )and that will smother them. Now this is only if they are the red bites and not if he has scratched them open.

If he has did this I would put antibiotic ointment on them and cover with a waterproof bandaid to seal and heal. Liquid bandage may work as well.

I know that this is late, but I wanted to chime in and give you a little info based on our family's experience with bug bites and MRSA. My daughter came home from her part time day care with what appeared to be ant bites. Over the course of the weekend, she continued to complain about them itching and hurting and said that if she had "princess bandaids" they would feel better. I put neosporan +, and waterproof, Nexcare princess bandages on them. By the beginning of the week - she was saying that she couldn't walk. When I pulled the bandages off, it looked like someone had put something the size of a pea under her skin, and they were turning black! We rushed to the pediatrician, who prescribed an oral antibiotic, told me to give it to her at the store (5PM) again before bedtime, again in the morning, and then bring her back @ 9 AM. When I brought her back, they took one look at her and said take her to the hospital. At the hospital (Arnold Palmer in Orlando) the anesthetized her and cut it out of 3 places! :( They also gave her IV antibiotics, and a prescription for 2 oral antibiotics. I was a wreck! To make a long story short - she ended up coming down with it 3 times in less than 2 months. I didn't take her back to the daycare until all lesions were completley healed and she had no open skin breaks of any kind. Well, the first time that I took her back - wham - she came home with the same kind of little red bump that looked like an ant bite. I was upset - but the next morning when it started swelling and looking like the others - I was really upset. We took her back to A/P and the same thing, this time they swabbed her nose and it came back positive for MRSA. I decided that if she had contracted this at the day care and was bringing it home, then I was going to irradicate it in our house. All towels were washed in hot water and bleach, all clothes in hot water soaked overnight and washed twice. I also started washing my daughter down with Betadine after her bath, letting it soak a couple of minutes and then rinsing her. I even washed the dog in Betadine. When she had the 3rd outbreak - we were referred to an infectious disease specialist in Orlando - Dr. Catherine Lamprecht. My friends were telling me that I was going overboard, and that I can't bubble wrap my baby, but the Pediatrician thought the Betadine was a good idea - but suggested that it might be alot of exposure to iodine and suggested that I switch to Hibi-Cleanse (what they use to scrub in for surgery). She told me to use it DAILY if she had any kind of bite, scrape, cut, scratch or broken skin of any kind, then 3 times a week for a couple of weeks after the last MRSA outbreak finished healing, and then once a week for maintenance. The infectious disease specialist thought that was a great plan! Dr. Lamprecht was also concerned because while the hospital thought that they were going after this very aggressively - they prescribed the wrong antibiotic! According to her - the ONLY antibiotics that are effective against MRSA are :BACTROBAN/ MUPIROCIN on lesions, and orally - BACTRIM/SEPTRA , CLINDAMYCIN, or ZYVOX. She specified that Keflex and Augmentin are NOT effective. My daughter only went to daycare twice a week from 9-2 for playtime with other kids, she no longer goes to day care, and amazingly we haven't had any problems since! all of the Dr.s that we saw said that it is running rampant in the daycares, schools and gyms! Scrub scrub scrub, clean clean clean! I hope that this information helps you.

to those who would like to fight staph and mrsa without the heavy antibiotics - usnea extract, tumeric internally, and/or tea tree oil - any of these works alone or in combination

You can use Melaleuca oil...it heals from the inside out and kills lots of different bacteria...It even worked on my niece who had a staph infection.

Good luck!!

Hi K.,

I know you've had a lot of great responses already, but I would encourage you to not use steroids on your precious one. Steriods actually shut down the adrenal system and cause the immune system to not function properly. The adrenal system (liver, kidneys, etc.) are vital to the immune system. It can take months for it to fully recover (for example, a five day usage can take 30 days for them to begin functioning again). Tea tree oil is extremely effective in killing staph infection. I know you can get it at the store, but I don't know how pure it is there. I would bet it is better than nothing, and I would encourage you to check it out. I am affiliated with a company that manufactures the purest grade of tea tree oil in many of their products, but that is not why I am sharing that with you. I just know it helps. If you were interested in more info from me about how you can get it, that's fine, but it would probably take too long to get it and you need to take action NOW for your son. I am glad to hear he is doing better though!

Blessings,

A. D.
www.livetotalwellness.com/adorzab

Are you sure they're chigger bites? My daughter had what I thought were chigger bites on the back of her neck. Then one of the lymph nodes at the base of her skull swelled up. I took her to the urgent care last Friday night. The Doc said she probably had a staph infection. He prescribed Bactroban. After 2 applications it was totally cleared up.

Maybe it's something that started as bites, but became infected. I think that's what happened in our case. Just a thought.

Good luck with whatever it is.

D.

PS: My little lady's a red head too (19 months). Gotta love that sensitive skin!!

Just so you know at walmart that sell a cream for chigger bites, and it really works. =)

WOW, I am glad you posted, and all the responses. I would have never in my wildest dreams considered the MRSA...
As for chiggers (the 1 who asked) they are an itty bitty red bug that likes to get around any clothing lines. Like socks, undies, under your armpits. Nice warm dark areas. They bite into you and keep eating straight down until they die. Fingernail polish does work. It suffocates them. BUT, a better alternative as someone said, the light bleach bath. Use 1 Tablespoon of bleach in bathwater, the night you notice them (or shortly therafter). This will irritate the chigger and he will crawl back out. I swear by this. I used to be in Campfire back in Texas (back in the 80s). We were avid campers.... and I always seemed to find the chigger beds.

K., I am glad your son is OK.

Some things to keep on hand: Wild Oregano Oil--kills MRSA and all other infections. Olive Leaf Extract nose spray, Castor oil is healing and can even be used in the eyes!(I use it for eye irritations)and is anti-fungal,Colloidal silver (Nature's Sunshine has the best)
I'm a grandma now and castor oil is the best. My son had bleeding diaper rash and tried everything Rx and all. Castor oil is what finally worked. Used it ever since. Great for dry skin! Also check out Bio Water.com
I had chiggers years ago as an adult. Itching was insane! That poor baby!

Are you sure they are chigger bites? Two weeks ago my 10 year old showed me what appeared to be chigger bites. I took him to the doctor and they tested him. He has a MRSA staph infection (the really bad kind of staph, not that there is a good kind). My 4 year old ended up with it too. Anyway, it's been a very difficult couple of weeks and they are just now beginning to respond to treatments. Both boys are taking super strong oral antibiotics twice a day and using Bactrim ointment on all of the bumps 4 times a day. We've tried a few other things too, but this is what is working. Whether it is chiggers or something else, I hope your son feels better soon.

check into this too:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008...

what are chiggers? with four small boys it sound slike I better watch out for them.

Wow! What a scary ordeal! Thank you for sharing this with us. I think this bug bit me a while ago and I didn't even know what it was. I always have tea tree on hand and that's what got rid of it for me. But MRSA is scary. My son is prone to MRSA. Right now he has an ear infection and that is gonna be my question to everybody. The drops they gave us don't seem to be working. I hope your baby will be fine soon.
N.

You probably know this, or else the doc told you, but wiht t Staph infection in your home, OBSESSIVELY wash your hands.
All of you. And do not re-use any towels or rags.
Trust me on this one--I had staph on my FACE!!!
UGGHHH!!!
Praying for a wuick recovery for your little one : )

--H.

Hello K.,

I have some wonderful stuff that will heal those chigger bites!
Where are you located? I could mail it to you asap!

Mother of 5 beautiful children,
Henderson, KY

D. H

I see you all have gone to the doctor and gotten him medication, thats great. Another thing you might want to try is an Aveno Oatmeal Bath. You can find them in the skincare section in a little box, they come in individual packs at any drug store. This will help tremendously also, with the itching and it's gentle on his skin.I'm a southern girl and my great-grandma use to bathe us in this stuff every night we'd come in from playing outside on a hot summers night because we'd have played in the grass allday. Hope his helps.

This may scare u but it needs to be checked for M.R.S.A ts is contagious by touch. me and my family all have it its is deadly if it gos into your lungs and it will spread and get to everyone in your faily u might even carry it now please for your son get it tested and call me about anything ###-###-####..

I agree with Alexis. Clear nail polish works.

Use clear nail polish on each spot...yes clear nail polish. It works

Is he scratching them? If so, it will take a while for them to heal. I've had some take 4 weeks to heal and I don't scratch them (at least, not when I'm awake). Keep using the cream (and an anti-itch cream or medicine if that's not what this cream is) and if it's not better in a 3-4 weeks, go back to the doctor. Some people just have longer chigger healing times.

We used clear nail polish on my sons a couple of years ago. It worked well!

Hi all! I'm responding because both of my son's have had that staph infection. My oldest son, who's 9 now, had a mosquito bite on his ankle, that deformed the look of his ankle, go prescribed augmentin....next day, blistered, uped the augmentin, next day, 105 fever, hospitalized for four days with broad spectrem antibiotics via IV. My youngest boy, had surgery at five weeks old to repair pyloric stenosis, one week later, got MRSA, wenton erythromyicin, cured......so, the point i'm making is, yes, be sure to wash your hands diligintly, but I want you all to know that Staph is living on all of us, all the time, no exception......especially on hands, around mouth, and nose. Staph causes a problem when it gets into our blood stream. i.e. through a cut, but bite surgery, virus, etc......so yes, wash your hands all the time, because it's healthier, but it won't take the staph off your bodies. If someone gets infected like this alot, you can be treated for colonization of the virus with a simple nasal spray prescribed by your doctor, and in that case, the whole family gets treated. Just don't think that hand, clothes and body washing will treat staph infections. Yes, it's good to be clean, but you did the right thing with treating with the antibitics.....

Kaely,

After reading your request and all the responses, I've come to the conclusion that we all, especially you in this particular instance, are very fortunate to have this forum to get advice! Wow!

I'm glad you caught the problem early and I know this info will help others in the future.

A.